The present invention is generally directed to a wine preserving assembly for insertion into a bottle of wine which enables an inert gas to be injected into the headspace of a bottle of wine while simultaneously enabling the evacuation of air contained within the headspace from the bottle of wine. The simultaneous injection-evacuation process is initiated solely by operatively engaging an inert gas-containing cannister into the wine preserving assembly which is seated in the neck of the bottle. The wine preserving assembly is used after a bottle of wine is opened and can add significant shelf life to an open bottle of wine.
It is well known that any oxygen-containing gas (e.g. air) can adversely effect the taste and character of wine over time and in some cases within just a day or two. As a result, air contained within the headspace of a wine bottle (i.e. the space between the wine remaining in the bottle and the base of the cork) instigates complex chemical reactions with the wine. These chemical reactions may adversely effect the taste of the wine and can may result in partially filled bottles or even full bottles of wine being discarded.
There have been efforts to replace the air contained within a bottle of wine after it is opened with an inert gas. Inert gases are those gases which do not contain a material amount of oxygen gas and therefore do not instigate chemical reactions with the wine contained in a wine bottle. However, many of these devices have proven awkward to use and/or have not been successful in enabling the consumer to readily preserve the wine in a bottle with an easy to operate and safe device which can both inject an inert gas into the headspace of a wine bottle and simultaneously remove any oxygen-containing gas therein.
The present invention is generally directed to a wine preserving assembly which may be easily inserted into the neck of a bottle and which can provide an inert gas into the headspace of a bottle while simultaneously evacuating the air contained within the headspace in a safe and effective manner that can be readily accomplished by the purchaser of a bottle of wine without awkward and/or multiple operations or difficult to use equipment.
In a particular aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wine preserving assembly comprising:
a) a housing having a lower housing portion, a middle housing portion and an upper housing portion, said lower housing portion being insertable into the neck of a wine bottle;
b) said upper housing portion having an opening for releasably receiving an inert gas-containing vessel and being separated from the middle housing portion by at least one pathway;
c) a pin adapted to penetrate the inert gas-containing vessel and to deliver the inert gas to a piston assembly;
d) a first passageway for delivering at least a portion of the inert gas from the piston assembly through an opening in the lower housing portion; and
e) said piston assembly upon contact with the inert gas, moving to a position causing the lower housing portion to separate from the middle housing portion to form a gap to enable gas contained within the headspace to enter the gap and exit through a second passageway between the upper housing portion and middle housing portion.